Posted on Dec 05, 2007

New 'U Stories' now online
 Each month, the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences posts a 'U Story' on its website. Each features highlights of the creative and socially aware professors, students, and programs in the college. The latest U Stories feature the Day of the Dead celebration and the musical methods of choral professor Paulette Gissendanner. Check them out here.

Spotlight on Staff
World Theater director is multi-talented

 After a lengthy hiatus from CSUMB, Joe Cardinalli recently returned to the university as interim director of the World Theater. He brings managerial skills to the position, but he's also a designer, technical theater consultant, television field director and a musician. His introduction to Fort Ord came during the 1960s when he played keyboard in a Monterey rock band. His band often played at Stilwell Hall, entertaining troops bound for Vietnam. In the late '60s, he earned a degree in theater arts from San José State, then went on to a 33-year career with the city of San Jose in the department of parks, recreation and neighborhood services. Before retiring earlier this year, he was the department's deputy director, responsible for managing about 1,400 employees, a $60 million operating budget and a $500 million capital budget. To read more about Joe, click here.

Spotlight on Alumni
Crystal Costa: Ready for prime time
 Crystal Costa is on the air. A 2007 graduate, she currently reports for KJCT News 8 in Grand Junction, Colo., and hopes to anchor one day. Getting to where she is took hard work every step of the way, even though she didn't always know where she was going. "When I started college, I had no idea what I wanted to do," says Crystal, who grew up in the Central Valley and admits she came to CSUMB because she "wanted to live at the beach." She majored in Human Communication because "my passion is writing and being around people. I don't do math, science or many other subjects well, so it was also a process of elimination. I dabbled in everything; I took newspaper writing classes, magazine writing, investigative journalism and even radio classes." When it came time to choose a concentration, Crystal found the help she needed from her adviser, Professor Juanita Darling. "She sat me down to really narrow my choices and decide what I should do as a career. That's when I finally realized that news reporting is perfect for me," says Crystal. To read more about Crystal, click here.

The holiday season, CSUMB style
UPD sponsors toy drive

 The University Police Department is collecting toys for underprivileged children in Monterey County that will be distributed through local non-profit organizations. New, unwrapped toys may be dropped off at the police department, 82-E. For information, contact Lt. Earl Lawson at 582-3062.

Don't forget the giving tree
 It's become an annual tradition. University Human Resources has set up a "giving tree" in the lobby of Bldg. 23 on Divarty Street. This year, UHR is partnering with the Mexican American Opportunity Foundation's Migrant Families Program in Salinas. The program recognizes the hardships faced by agricultural working families and provides children and their families with comprehensive social and health services. Employees can help bring holiday cheer to these families by choosing an ornament from the giving tree. Each ornament is labeled with the name and age of a child and what he or she would like for a holiday gift. After purchasing the item, participants are asked to bring the wrapped gift, along with the ornament, to UHR by Dec. 14. For further information, call UHR at 582-3389.

Tasteful houses sweeten party
 As Hansel and Gretel can attest, gingerbread houses, with their candy-cane columns, gumdrop landscaping, peppermint pinwheel decorations and icing trim, are practically irresistible. So it's no surprise that these confectionary cottages - and other structures - are the basis of a campus-wide competition now in its fourth year. This year's competition, dubbed "It's a Small World - Campus Edition," will challenge each team to design and construct a house with an international theme. Basic gingerbread house kits will be provided and edible add-ons are allowed. The event will take place in the University Center ballroom from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 13. On-lookers and cheering squads are welcome. Finished houses will serve as table centerpieces at the annual holiday party. The winner of the Best Use of Theme award will be treated to a pizza party for up to 10 people courtesy of Sodexho. To register a team, call Kerri Rivera in University Human Resources at 582-3389 by Dec. 7.

Light up the World
 The annual faculty and staff holiday party will be held on Friday, Dec. 14 from 6 to 10 p.m. in the University Center ballroom. Tickets are available at the front desks of the University Center and the Alumni and Visitors Center.

Txt Msgs Alert U
Cell phones transmit safety alerts at CSUMB
• Cell phones - a convenient way to send greetings to friends and family via text messages - have been transformed into campus communications vehicles. At CSUMB, the service is called - what else? - OTTERalert. They blast out campus-wide security and emergency communication alarms - a service that has been getting a lot of attention since the tragic shootings at Virginia Tech.
The campus community can rest assured that OTTERalert is for emergency alerts only; those who sign up will not receive spam. Privacy is protected, and only campus administrators and members of the University Police Department can originate the messages. To read more, click here.

 Thursday, Dec. 6: Osher Lifelong Learning Institute's faculty research speaker series continues with a talk by Professor Johanna Poethig, "Creative Interventions in Public Space/Public Mind," 11 a.m.-noon, Alumni and Visitors Center
 Thursday, Dec. 6: San Jose Taiko at World Theater, 7:30 p.m. Box office: 582-4580
 Saturday, Dec. 8: Return of the Natives needs volunteers to help with planting in Natividad Creek Park from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Information: watershed.csumb.edu/ron or call Aaron Fox at 582-3686.

Upcoming
 Wednesday, Dec. 12: Teledramatic Arts and Technology capstone festival, 6 p.m., World Theater
 Thursday, Dec. 13: Gingerbread house building contest, 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., University Center ballroom
 Friday, Dec. 14: CSUMB's annual staff and faculty holiday party, starts at 6 p.m., University Center ballroom. Tickets are available at the University Center front desk and the Alumni and Visitors Center
 Tuesday, Dec. 18: Liberal Studies capstone festival, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., University Center conference rooms
 Tuesday, Dec. 18: Strategic Planning town hall meeting, 3 to 5 p. m., Alumni and Visitors Center

Ongoing
 Exhibit of student art work in the Balfour/Brutzman Gallery in VPA No. 71, open Thursdays 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Fridays noon to 3 p.m.

 

 A reminder: Fourth Avenue (the street behind the Alumni and Visitors Center) between Divarty Street and Inter-Garrison Road is ONE WAY southbound. There are no plans to make the street two-way, even during the construction work in the area. It's a safety issue - the street is too narrow to safely accommodate two-way traffic and parking.

 Divarty Street is now open.

 Inter-Garrison Road is closed from Sixth Avenue to the entrance to parking lot 12. Fifth Avenue is closed from Inter-Garrison to the entrance to parking lot 12. The VPA buildings are accessible via parking lot 71. Parking lot 12 is accessible from A Street and Divarty Street.

 Our campus is under construction. Please be cautious around construction areas. We invite you to view this short slide show created with yoursafety in mind.

CSUMB library receives $1 million - It's from David & Lucile Packard Foundation
A landmark library under construction at California State University, Monterey Bay has received a $1 million grant from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, CSUMB officials announced. "This leadership gift is a major vote of confidence in the university," CSUMB President Dianne Harrison said Friday.
- Salinas Californian, Dec. 3, 2007

CSUMB student gets $270 fine, probation - No contest in fracas at rally
A Salinas man hailed by some for exercising free speech but arrested and charged with disturbing the peace will have to pay a $270 fine and serve three years probation. Alberto Tovar, 22, wasn't present Friday in Superior Court, but entered a no contest plea through his attorney as part of an agreement reached with prosecutors.
- Monterey Herald, Dec. 1, 2007

Government abuse 'grim,' Ellsberg says - Daniel Ellsberg, who leaked the Pentagon Papers in 1971 to The New York Times, spoke Wednesday night at California State University, Monterey Bay
Politicians and civil servants too scared to go public about government wrongdoing could result in a U.S. attack on Iran and continued violations of individual civil rights, a social activist warned Wednesday evening. Speaking before a crowded auditorium at California State University, Monterey Bay's World Theater, former RAND Corp. military analyst Daniel Ellsberg recalled the fallout from his release of the Pentagon Papers in 1971, one of the most important leaks of classified information during the Vietnam War.
- Salinas Californian, Nov. 29, 2007

Daniel Ellsberg speaks to a full house at CSUMB
Daniel Ellsberg is famous for leaking classified Pentagon papers to the New York Times back in 1971, and on Wednesday night people on the Central Coast got a rare chance to hear his story first-hand. Ellsberg spoke to a full house at California State University, Monterey Bay, and as an early opponent to the Iraq war, he's using his own story as a launching pad, to urge others to take a chance and to make a difference. Ellsberg was arrested and put on trial following his leak of the Pentagon papers, but the charges were later dropped because of so-called "improper government conduct."
- KION-46, Nov. 28, 2007

At the Heart of the Arts - Amalia Mesa-Bains
Altars - everybody has them. A space set aside for objects of personal significance. It could be the corner of a desk in your office or the corner of a room in your home. Thirty-five years ago, Dr. Amalia Mesa-Bains had another idea for altars: use the design as a format for artistic expression. Today, her altar impressions are displayed in galleries and museums across Mexico, Europe and the U.S. - including the Smithsonian. As the first chair of the Department of Visual and Public Art at CSUMB, she is highly regarded as an independent artist and cultural critic.
- Monterey County Magazine, Winter 2007

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